Posted in PrivacyThe Electronic Communications Privacy Act (“ECPA”) prohibits interception of “any wire, oral, or electronic communication.” 18 U.S.C. § 2511. Electronic communication is defined as “any transfer of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, data, or intelligence of any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio, electromagnetic, photo-electronic or photo-optical system.” 18 U.S.C. … Continue reading
Posted in Employment and labor, General, PrivacyAfter January 1, 2015, individuals whose wills are governed by Delaware law can have their digital assets and digital accounts accessed and controlled by their personal representatives of their estates, courtesy of a new Delaware law. Modeled on the uniform model Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, the Delaware law vests the decedent’s personal representative … Continue reading
The following non-exhaustive list of state, federal, and foreign statutes may apply to social media issues. Anti-SLAPP (U.S. state law) – provides protection against Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (“SLAPP”). See our posts on anti-SLAPP. Americans With Disabilities Act (“ADA”) – U.S. federal law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. See our posts on ADA. Canada’s Anti-Spam … Continue reading
Posted in PrivacyCongress woman Zoe Lofgren recently introduced a bill intending to align the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 with the current state of technology, especially with respect to cloud computing. The Online Communications and Geolocation Protection Act, backed by tech companies such as Google, Apple, Microsoft, Intel, Twitter, eBay and Amazon, intends to clarify and apply … Continue reading
Posted in Litigation, PrivacyA South African high court recently ruled that a civil litigant’s private Facebook messages, which were unlawfully obtained by the hacking of his personal account, were nevertheless admissible as evidence against him. In Harvey v Niland, the litigants were members of the same corporation. Niland was also an employee of the corporation. After leaving his … Continue reading
The following non-exhaustive list of provincial and federal Canadian statutes and codes may apply to social media issues. Advertising Standards of Canada Code – creates guidelines that set standards for responsible advertising in Canada and forms the basis upon which advertising is evaluated in response to consumer, trade or special interest group complaints. Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (“CASL”) – … Continue reading
Posted in LitigationOn August 29, 2013, the District of New Jersey ruled that the federal Stored Communications Act (“SCA”) covers “private” Facebook wall posts. The plaintiff, a registered nurse and paramedic, sued her former employer in federal court asserting a number of claims including violations of the SCA. The SCA prohibits unauthorized access of stored wire and … Continue reading
Posted in PrivacyShould companies with social media pages be concerned with dissemination of their information to other entities, such as current or potential competitors? Some privacy groups think so, and warn that a user of popular social media site Facebook may well find his/her/its private data shared with an unexpected entity. In Facebook, for example, this newly … Continue reading
